One of my favourite things to do on YouTube of late is to watch certain film scenes re-cut with a different musical score. For example, my two go-to clips of this sort are the opening heist/car chase scene from Edgar Wright’s 2017 flick, BabyDriver, but with DeathGrips‘ ‘The Fever (Aye Aye)‘ or the full CowboyBebop theme spliced over the top. My point is that when you get the right visuals and the right music applied together, you end up with something not only a shit load of fun to watch, but something spectacular as well. Such is the awesome case for ‘XXXX Bitter Irony‘, the newest music video from Brisbane progressive jazz trio, Milton Man Gogh.

Milton Man Gogh – made up of saxophonist Andrew Saragossi, upright bassist Zac Sakrewski, and powerhouse drummer Benjamin Shannon – are a bit of hidden gem in the local Australian music scene right now. However, hopefully, that changes very soon as these guys make incredible music together, with each member excelling at their respective roles and showing stellar control and care in their performances. (And if anyone remembers or cares, I was actually a fan of their 2017 LP, ‘Stress To Impress‘, whose artwork also gets a little reference here too.)

Brought to full life by director and editor, Will France, who really went above the call of duty to make this video happen with some killer cinematography and editing, ‘XXXX Bitter Irony‘ plays out beautifully like a proper movie score should. It always adds to the visuals, rather than distracting from them. The song’s varying peaks and troughs are fittingly matched to the video’s various plot beats, making for something larger than the sum of its already solid parts; all as the playful irony of this prog-jazz banger gets a perfect, charming on-screen representation.

There’s no generic performance shots getting in the way here. No sir, just an impeccably well-made video showing the Queensland three-piece and their team creating a silly, ironic and Australiana narrative, all set to the experimental-progressive jazz soundscape that this band calls home. Also, with just how much beer gets shown off in this clip, anyone would think that the trio were sponsored by Castlemaine XXXX Beer. They weren’t, but it’s crazy to see how many alcoholic products can be picked out here. The video even ends with them in a brewery! I won’t spoil the whole story here, but just know that it’s a rather goofy yet highly entertaining ride.

This dynamic and explosive six-and-a-half-minute piece from Milton Man Gogh is lifted from the EP of the same name – ‘XXXX Bitter Irony‘ – which was released back in July of this year via iconic Sydney label (and one of my personal faves), Art As Catharsis. Go watch this new video then do yourself a favour and check out their latest EP. Challenge yourself a bit!